Brooklyn Bridge & Central Park 6-8-10

This was my second time on The Brooklyn Bridge; the first time was a night when the bridge was lit.  I was much more alert to the sounds of the cars below and of bicycles beside us as we walked across.  There were few lights in the river, but  many lights along its shores and a glow from both sides:  New York proper and Brooklyn.  We also noticed Pier 17 bustling with activity.  During the daylight hours I noticed the amazing technology used to erect the bridge and the amount of work it must have been.  I can imagine the fascination people had with the bridge back in the 1840′s and how they must have felt when the unsure thing became a reality.   Much like the people then, we have used the bridge to travel to the city to work(tour) and for entertainment.  It is still highly used today.  The bridge gives me the opportunity to integrate math and to look at the amazing accomplishments made in America at this time and how it all fits into an era when other amazing achievements were being made.  We can discuss the role the bridge played and the importance it was to the two communities.

Central Park is VAST – you feel as if you enter a different world away from the chaos of the city; one that is tranquil and calming.  Ed explained that it was developed to give people space, with the loss of the beach front, people needed a place to escape the chaos of the city. He also explained the controversies: making the park so large and placement of roads through the park. Central Park may be the most expansive park in the US and today is maintained by a not-for-profit organization. After the park had fallen into the wrong hands and had been deglected and abused for many years, this non-profit group raised money to re-establish the park as a community getaway. The park is a designed park; much of the landscape serves no purpose other than it creates an atmosphere of “non-city”. It was designed by two men; Frederick Olmsted and Calver Vaux (pronounced vox). We visited the Swedish Cottage, the Belvedere Castle, and Strawberry Hill. There are many parks throughout the city, all MUCH smaller. I can think of several ways Central Park can be used in my classroom; planning out the placement of parks on a city grid, how to raise money for betterment of a community, and the purposes parks play in a community.

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